A couple of weeks ago, someone e-mailed me suggesting that so much coverage of Abby Wambach was a factor in the not-so-great attendance at Sahlen’s Stadium for Flash matches. Through six matches, Western New York is averaging 3,632 fans, that’s fourth in the National Women’s Soccer League behind Portland (12,857), FC Kansas City (4,378) and Washington (4,268), a last-place club with just one win.

The premise of the person who e-mailed: The rest of the Western New York players, ones who’ve been with the team longer, deserved some coverage, and if I provided that it would boost attendance. Huh? I’m sure that person thinks the e-mail prompted Wednesday’s story on Flash defender Alex Sahlen. Well, it didn’t. I’d been thinking about it all season and Sahlen’s three assists in four games was perfect timing for it.

There is some merit to the e-mailer’s suggestion about spreading the wealth and writing about more than one player. I just didn’t understand – and still don’t – the logic behind why anyone would think it would attract more fans. Wambach is the drawing card, she’s who most fans come to see, and just her presence on the team helps the Flash get better media coverage. They’re on the front page more and on the TV news more simply because the reigning FIFA World Player of the Year, a Pittsford native who has scored more international goals (160) than any other person on the planet, is on the team.

It’s quite obvious to me. Listen, this is no shot or disrespect to other Flash players. They’re very good and all good pros, just like Abby, but she’s the main attraction. Her teammates know that. Do they feel they don’t get as much credit as they deserve? Probably. That’s human nature. But in regard to media attention, they know she helps the team, helps the league and helps the sport.

Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez haven’t played a game this season. Are Yankees fans blaming too many stories on them for the lack of fans at games? Um, yeah – no. Wambach’s career has inspired others in many ways. Heck, some fans even write songs about her (to my knowledge, I know of no other songs written about Flash players).

So … what you’ve been reading was my long-winded lead in to this wonderful song below. It’s performed and written by Abby O’Connor, a BIG U.S. women’s national team fan who is a very talented young songwriter. She’s 19 years old and a sophomore at the University of Texas in Austin. She’s a public relations major who may pursue a degree in sports media.

“Music is just a hobby,” she says, “and I really only play in my bedroom.” A native of Houston, she has done 15 songs on YouTube. What she does is take the music from another song and adapt the lyrics to fit her soccer theme. This one is called “Passing Mia,” and the rhythm or music is from ABBA’s Mama Mia! It is, of course, about Wambach surpassing Mia Hamm’s world record of 158 goals on June 20 when Abby scored four in the first half in a 5-0 victory over South Korea. From Chasing Mia to Passing Mia to Chasing Abby (which is what Alex Morgan and Sydney Leroux will be doing for years). It’s pretty sweet and a pretty cool song. Enjoy.

Wambach's 29th-minute header off Megan Rapinoe's corner kick was the record-breaker, No. 159, before she scored again just before halftime. JIM O"CONNOR/USA Today Sports Images

The chase is over. Pittsford native and United States national team star Abby Wambach finally caught and then quickly passed Mia Hamm on Thursday night, scoring four goals in the first 29 minutes of an exhibition game against South Korea at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J., to give her 160 international goals. Like two exclamation points, Wambach netted the tying goal and record-breaker with classic headers, her specialty. Wambach scored her 159th career goal, the record-breaker, on a strong, leaping header off a corner kick from Megan Rapinoe in the 29th minute, a famous combination connecting once again. That came just 11 minutes after the record-tying goal, which was also an angled header from five yards off a cross from Lauren Cheney.

* PHOTO GALLERY of her life/career (even a toddler pic)
* THE LIST: date/site/opponent and how she scored all 160 goals
* PHOTOS of her high school career (including basketball)

The entire U.S. team ran onto the field to congratulate and briefly celebrate with Wambach, who kissed the soccer ball, and tossed it to the sideline for safe-keeping. Then she turned toward her family, including her parents, Judy and Peter, and her siblings, gathered in suite. Her mother appeared to be crying on the telecast by NBC Sports Network. It was Wambach’s seventh hat trick. But she wasn’t done. In stoppage time of the first half, Wambach added her fourth goal of the night, running onto a pass along the goal line from Alex Morgan and burying it in the top of the net. ”One great player breaking the record of another great player,” U.S. coach Tom Sermanni said during an interview at halftime.

A few minutes after the record-breaker on Twitter, Hamm tweeted: “Congratulations @AbbyWambach! So proud of you, my friend. You a warrior and true champion. Enjoy it.” Wambach’s Western New York Flash teammates tweeted encouragement and congratulations throughout the first half and beyond.

@AbbyWambach I am so glad to be teammates with THE best finisher/goal scorer in the world! So glad I can celebrate with you!!! #rolemodel

FAST FACTS: U.S. is 101-2-8 when Wambach scores; it was her first 4-goal match; she has five 3-goal and one 5-goal game; she also passed Hamm for multi-goal games (39).

Wambach scored her first goal of the game, No. 157 for her career, in the 10th minute when Cheney fed her in the box. Wambach controlled, turned and fired a shot to the left of goalie Kim Jungmi. The 5-foot-11 forward from Our Lady of Mercy High School and reigning FIFA World Player of the Year reached Hamm’s milestone in her 207th career game; Hamm needed 275 matches to score 158. The 33-year-old Wambach, whose pursuit of Hamm was dubbed “Chasing Mia” by the U.S. Soccer Federation, is playing her last international match for 2½ months, as the American squad will take a break to allow players to focus on their club team season in the new National Women’s Soccer League. It was apparent that her U.S. teammates wanted her to get the record before that long break, as they fed her constantly over the game’s first 30 minutes. In her first season with the Western New York Flash, Wambach leads her team and the league in goals with six. She and U.S. teammate Carli Lloyd will be back with the third-place Flash (5-2-3), who haven’t lost in seven straight matches, for Sunday’s 4:05 p.m. game at Sahlen’s Stadium in Rochester against the Seattle Reign (0-9-1), whose goalie is U.S. star Hope Solo. Wambach used to idolize Hamm, whose poster she had on her bedroom wall in her parents’ cul-de-sac home in Pittsford. Wambach became a scoring sensation in high school, then as a college freshman helped lead the Florida Gators to the NCAA title. She made her U.S. national team debut in 2001, and 10 years later scored a dramatic goal in the 2011 World Cup quarterfinals that raised her personal popularity and helped reignite interest in women’s soccer in America. Wambach’s leaping header on the far post off Rapinoe’s cross tied the match in the 122nd minute, saving the United States. It would go on to finish as runner-up to Japan, but the Americans avenged that by winning last year’s Olympics in London.

Wambach’s biggest goal before 2011 was another leaping header in overtime that gave the U.S. Olympic gold in 2004 in Greece and sent stars such as Hamm, Julie Foudy and Joy Fawcett out into retirement as winners. She exited in the 58th minute at Red Bull Arena to a standing ovation. Wambach had talked in recent weeks about hoping to get the record so the chase would be over and she could focus on team goals. Mission accomplished. Abby stands alone.

Jeff DiVeronica has covered professional soccer and the Rhinos for the Democrat and Chronicle since the team's inception in 1996. "Devo's Direct Kicks" takes aim mostly at Rochester soccer, but will also highlight the USL, MLS and U.S. national team play. Devo, his nickname since college at St. John Fisher, also hosts two weekly radio shows each Saturday on WHTK-AM/FM (1280/107.3 or www.whtk.com). "Kick This!" (11 a.m.) features soccer talk, while the Canandaigua National Bank High School Sports Show (noon) covers Section V sports. E-mail Jeff at jdiveron@DemocratandChronicle.com.
Or follow him on Twitter: @RocDevo